PUTRAJAYA: Halal industry stakeholders should embrace the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR4.0) which offers possibilities to boost their industrial capacity, increase productivity and enhance efficiency, says the Prime Minister. He pointed out that opportunities in halal industries were immense citing the global halal industry market size projected to be worth US$5tril (RM20.74tril) by 2030 from its current market worth of US$3.1tril (RM12.86tril). "Halal industry players should enhance trade ties among Muslim nations through multilateral and bilateral meetings, trade missions and free trade agreements so as to meet the demand of global Muslim and non-Muslim consumers. His speech was read by International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Azmin Ali. "Malaysia’s halal industry is a key feature of the NRP with the recovery of the industry being paramount to the resilience of overall Muslim-majority national economy," he said.

PETALING JAYA: Freedom of religion is provided under Article 11 of the Federal Constitution, says the Malaysian Buddhist Consultative Council (MBCC). MBCC said this has created feelings of unease and even trepidation as it could lead to the deterioration of non-Muslims rights to freedom of religion as enshrined in the Federal Constitution. "It ironically contradicts YAB Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s concept of Keluarga Malaysia that he propagated in his inaugural speech upon taking office," they said. "May the wisdom of the Prime Minister shine through his leadership for the Keluarga Malaysia concept to be fully implemented at all levels. "May his administration be exemplary in its commitment to uphold the fundamental rights of every citizen provided by the Federal Constitution," they said.

The associations are the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA), Royal Institution of Surveyors Malaysia (RISM), Association of Valuers, Property Managers, Estate Agents and Property Consultants in the Private Sector Malaysia (PEPS), Malaysian Institute of Property and Facility Managers (MIPFM), and Persatuan Perunding Hartanah Muslim Malaysia (PEHAM). According to the statement, this is a reminder that there are people who are not estate agents but are operating an estate agency business illegally — and using many forms of creative ideas to do so. Real estate service is gazetted as a professional service under the Valuers, Appraisers, Estate Agents and Property Managers Act 1981 (Act 242) to protect the public. While this is the law, many have found the work of an agent "lucrative" and have "jumped in" to provide real estate service. Aside from that, the real estate associations are not against innovation and technology, but they want to reinforce their stand that they cannot condone anyone, either individuals or companies, in any form or shape that does not comply with existing laws of the land where it fits as far as real estate agency practice is concerned.

Had Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Chiu Wai followed through on a promise he made many years ago, he might never have appeared in the latest Marvel movie, Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings. While recording the radio show, actress-turned-host Carol Cheng, 63, mentioned an interview she did with Leung almost 30 years ago, when he was a leading star at Hong Kong television station TVB. He also described working 10 hours a day while filming Shang-Chi, with little time for rest or meals. The intensity, he said, reminded him of the days when he was filming TV serials. After Shang-Chi, he returned to Hong Kong to film the crime thriller Once Upon A Time In Hong Kong, and will head to Shanghai soon to film another movie.

MUNICH: Volkswagen AG said it planned to set up a venture capital fund, which would initially invest €300mil (US$355mil or RM1.48bil) in decarbonisation projects and start-ups. “Decarbonisation will make many things more affordable, not more expenstive,” Herbert Diess, chief execofficer of Volkswagen, said in a LinkedIn post, adding that reducing carbon dioxide is possible without sacrificing the standard of living. “Carbon capturing to remove the CO2 is feasible, but not yet on scale and it is still very expensive,” Diess added. In a bid to make battery-powered cars affordable for the masses and younger generations, Volkswagen on Monday unveiled a fully electric small car, Id Life, to be launched in 2025.

IPOH: The homestay guest at a condominium who assaulted a 64-year-old security guard in December last year, who later died in August has been charged with murder. No plea was recorded from businessman Ahmad Noor Azhar Muhammad, 33, after the murder charge was read to him before Magistrate Noor Azreen Liana Mohd Darus on Thursday (Sept 9). "I am requesting the court to withdraw the initial charge, and for the accused to be charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code for murder," she said. He had sustained injuries after he was assaulted by Ahmad Noor, and was brought to the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital in a semi-conscious state. When met outside the court, the watching brief lawyer of the guard’s wife, M. Kulasegaran said they were satisfied that the accused had been charged for murder.

PETALING JAYA: More than half or 50.5% of Malaysia's total population have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 on Wednesday (Sept 8), says the Special Committee on Covid-19 Vaccine Supply Access Guarantee (JKJAV). In a series of tweets on Thursday (Sept 9), JKJAV said that 16,492,295 Malaysians have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 while 20,293,582 Malaysians have received at least one dose. It also showed that 70.5% of the country's adult population have also been fully vaccinated while 89.5% of the adult population have received at least one dose. A total of 320,452 doses of the vaccine was administered on Wednesday, with 128,038 people receiving their first dose and 192,414 receiving their second dose. The national immunisation program was launched on Feb 24 this year.

The US talk show host Ellen DeGeneres wants to celebrate the final season of her talk show with a lineup of celebrity guests, and is inviting stars like Kim Kardashian, Jennifer Aniston and Jimmy Kimmel in the first week. Friends star Aniston has already been on the show 18 times, including on the very first show, the comedian wrote on Twitter on Wednesday. Reality TV star Kardashian has already made 11 appearances on the talk show. Other celebrities expected to appear on the 19th and final season of The Ellen DeGeneres Show starting in mid-September include Sean 'Diddy' Combs, Tiffany Haddish, Melissa McCarthy and Julianne Moore. She later issued a public apology after employees spoke out about intimidation, racism and a toxic work culture.

Three visually impaired students from Kota Kinabalu defied the odds and clinched the first prize at the International Youth Music Competitions (IYMC) in July under the Folk, Traditional and World Music category. The Sabahan students performed the folk song Lenggang Kangkung using three traditional percussion instruments – gong, bamboo drum and kulintang, an eight-piece brass gong. Stefanus, 29, submitted his students’ video entry for July’s theme on folk, traditional and world music. Stefanus (top left) has been training his special needs students virtually since the start of the third movement control order. During the third movement control order in June, we conducted our training virtually.

Fallen biotech star Elizabeth Holmes's fraud trial opened Wednesday in California, with prosecutors claiming she told grandiose lies to cheat investors in her once-billion-dollar company, as her defence said she simply made mistakes. "Theranos failed in part because it made mistakes, but mistakes are not crimes. She and Balwani, the former Theranos chief operating officer whom she dated for a time, are charged with conspiring to scam Theranos investors and customers. And, say prosecutors, Holmes knew it, yet continued to lie to investors, doctors and patients so she could raise more than US$700mil (RM2.9bil) for the company. In 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission presented the Theranos case as a lesson for Silicon Valley, a warning against the "fake it till you make it" culture.

KUALA LUMPUR: Students from Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) will be able to access all the news available on The Star online thanks to a corporate sponsorship. Nirvana Asia Group has contributed RM50,000 to Star Media Group (SMG) to sponsor The Star Digital Access for UTAR. “The Star is the leading English newspaper in Malaysia and university students need it to access reliable news. Au thanked Nirvana Group and Kong for their generous contribution in enabling UTAR students to get digital access to news in The Star. “Students from UTAR are the first batch to be part of this campaign.

When we launched our (almost) year-long birthday celebrations in March this year, we spoke of how news consumption has changed over the years. That is why the 50 Days of Giveaways Contest was held as a way to say thank you. And here’s our birthday wish, or rather, our pledge: SMG will continue to engage our audiences in meaningful ways. As we toast our 50th birthday, we hope to continue being the first to bring you the news. We don’t say this often enough, but thank you for your support in making us The People’s Paper.

“I am planning to give the prize to my wife whose birthday falls in November. Today is SMG’s 50th anniversary celebration and also your final shot at winning the grand prize of a Mazda2 Hatchback. Philippe Wong, a bank employee from Petaling Jaya, is now hoping to driving home the new car after winning a Panasonic 55” 4K Smart TV. “In turn, I surprised my parents when I told them that I would be giving the new TV to them. Sponsors for the contest are Mazda, Panasonic, Honor, Sunway Hotels & Resorts, Canon, Shopee, BOH, Wellous, SASA, Habib Jewels, Citizen and Bank Rakyat.

TUMPAT: Ahmad Airoul Firhan Mohd Rosdi signed up for vaccination through MySejahtera on Aug 11 and was surprised to learn he would be getting jabbed on his 18th birthday. Ahmad Airoul Firhan, from Kampung Alor Pasir, was accompanied by his mother Siti Rohana Idris, 41. Getting vaccinated is also his preparation to travel back to his campus when higher learning institutions are allowed to reopen, he said. The day was made even more special when Ahmad Airoul Firhan received a cake and chocolate bouquet from a representative of the Kelantan People’s Action Council (MTRK). MTRK representative Aiman Yusri Mohd Yusof said the gifts were for Ahmad Airoul Firhan to cherish the memories of him getting the Covid-19 vaccination appointment on his 18th birthday.

PETALING JAYA: Stay-at-home parents have welcomed the government’s initiative to provide a social security net for them under the Social Security Organisation’s (Socso) proposed Housewife Social Safety Scheme (SKSSR) which covers disability and invalidity protection for homemakers. “I also welcome the announcement that the government will be covering the Socso contribution for housewives who are from households below the poverty line. The protection and benefits offered by SKSSR include permanent disability and medical benefits, invalidity pension, survivor’s pension and constant-attendance allowance. Nur Faizah, who has a part-time home bakery business, welcomed the news that housewives who work part-time or are self-employed can also voluntarily participate in the scheme. Implementing the scheme also affirms that undertaking such work was recognised as having social and economic value, she added.